A drum brake adjuster disposes a pair of brake shoes in close proximity to a drum so that upon a brake application the shoes need only travel through a running clearance to effectuate braking. Consequently, a motor vehicle operator senses braking when a brake pedal moves through a relatively short stroke rather than a full stroke which would be required as the shoes wear and the clearance with the drum increases.
Drum brake adjusters, such as illustrated in U.S. Pat. No. 3,706,360, utilize an extendible member and a pawl to extend the extendible member when the clearance between the brake shoes and the drum is above a predetermined running clearance. As the prior art provides a multiplicity of springs to provide for brake shoe retraction and cooperation between the pawl and extendible member, such adjusters are costly and require lengthy assembly procedures. Consequently, it is believed to be desirable to provide a simple drum brake adjuster wherein the number of springs is reduced.